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Lamar has been busy the past few days. Our friends at @UofLFootball have put together a video showing what Lamar has been up to today in NYC. I also wanted to include some stuff I had seen throughout the day. Lamar Jackson is in NYC preparing for the Heisman Trophy Ceremony which happens tomorrow night at 8pm. The ceremony will be on ESPN & will also be broadcast live on 93.9 The Ville! Enjoy!

In a sign of things to come, Lamar made history tonight. He became the first Cardinal to ever win the Maxwell Award for the nations Player Of The Year & the first Card to win the Walter Camp Player of The Year Award. He was also named to the All-American team. He somehow lost the O’Brien award (best QB) to a guy that finished second to Lamar in the ACC Player Of The Year Race:

Prior to this football season for the University of Louisville, I posted a game by game prediction and then I asked if you wanted to pump the brakes or continue to ride the hype train. In that article I stated that I was going to ride that train all the way to a new years bowl game. I predicted that Louisville would go 11-1 losing to only Clemson and just miss the college football playoffs. Most said I was a little too optimistic and that 9 maybe 10 wins would be more realistic. Then the season started and Louisville came out absolutely destroying opponents. College GameDay came to the Ville and Louisville beat Florida State worse than Ralphie beat Scott Farkus. Lamar looked better than advertised and with the top 5 showdown at Clemson looming, I still saw that look in Bobby’s eye. That confident look and smirky devilish smile led me to believe that he knew he had something special with this team. I suddenly had plenty of company in my belief of an 11 win regular season. After coming up a yard short of certain victory in Death Valley, I no longer saw that look in Bobby’s eye and the team started trending downward with a loss of focus and preparation. You know how the rest of the regular season ended. So, it turns out Louisville finished about where the majority of the fans expected prior to the season. My question to you is are you disappointed with the Citrus bowl? It’s clear that based on the early season success and being so close to the playoffs, expectations were raised. If you go back to the Red White scrimmage and I told you that Louisville would win 9 games, play in the Citrus bowl vs LSU and have a Heisman Trophy finalist, would you be happy with that season? I would signup for that season (minus the last loss of the regular season). The potential of beating LSU to end the season can really set the tone for next season. Let’s not be disappointed but rather celebrate and support this team one last time.

Tonight it was made official. Lamar Jackson was named a Heisman Trophy finalist. Lamar & 4 other athletes were invited to New York for the ceremony which will air live at 8pm on ESPN. Here is the official release and the presser via periscope.

Louisville's Lamar Jackson has been named one of five finalists for the 2016 @HeismanTrophy. #L1C4

The atmosphere was electric, the players were hyped, and the Antelopes of Grand Canyon gave the No. 14 team all they could handle inside their home arena. Grand Canyon even had the lead at halftime by 1 point off a buzzer-beater NBA-range 3.

It wasn’t enough as the Cards eventually pulled away by the 12 minute TV Timeout and never trailed the rest of the way. Eventually the Cards would seal the deal by a score of 79-70. DeWayne Russell led the comeback attempt with 42 points, the Antelopes’ next highest scorer had 8. Deng Adel led the way for the Cards with 15 points, VJ King showcased his ability with 14 points, Ray Spalding chipping in 14, and Matz Stockman had a career-high 10 points but didn’t play in the second half.

In a game where the upset seemed not only plausible but probable for much of the game, the Cards found a way to win. Do not downplay anything about it, the crowd was nuts, their point guard was unconscious, and they played with a lot more energy in the first half than the Cards did. The important thing is, the Cards walked away with a win and improve to 7-1.

Next the Cards will be at home to take on Southern Illinois on December 7 at 7pm. I’m sure this game will serve as a wake up call that this team cannot start flat and must defend and attack for the entire 40 minutes if they’re going to achieve their potential. I’m happy with the win last night, resilience regardless of opponent in an environment like that cannot be emphasized enough.

Jaire Alexander just finished his sophomore season and is already a shut down corner. He was graded as PFF’s best corner in college football for the 2016 season and is my favorite player on the team. His interception vs. Clemson in the endzone and against Virginia are two of the best I have ever seen. Enjoy this highlight video from @TTTWILL Read the rest of this entry →

The No. 14 Louisville Cardinals host the No. 15 Purdue Boilermakers tonight at 7pm in the Big 10/ACC challenge. The Cards are 6 point favorites as if now and the game can be seen on ESPN.

Purdue enters the game with a tall lineup. Caleb Swanigan is the Boilermakers’ leading scorer at 18 ppg and leading rebounder at 12 rpg. The Cardinals are going to have to shake off the awful 2nd half from the Battle for Atlantis Championship against Baylor and look for easy shots to boost their confidence.

Purdue is a very scary matchup and will likely give Louisville all it can handle for the majority of the game. I see the Cards pulling away with a late run and free throws to extend the lead to a final score of 76-64.

The 2016 All ACC football teams were announced today. The teams were voted upon by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association (ACSMA). Louisville had one player voted to the first team offense ans one to the first team defense. “ Florida State junior Dalvin Cook, the ACC’s rushing leader with 1,620 yards, leads the overall voting with 139 points. He is joined on the first team by Louisville sophomore quarterback Lamar Jackson, who leads the conference in total offense with 410.7 yards per game and set a conference record for touchdown responsibility with 51 (30 passing, 21 rushing).” Check out the lists and see how much you agree or disagree with their selections.

Rocco Gasparro

Louisville Football SID

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Finishing the 2016 regular season with a 9-3 mark, three members of the University of Louisville football team have accepted invitations to 68th Annual Reese’s Senior Bowl on Jan 28, 2017.

Wide receiver Jamari Staples, tight end Cole Hikutini safety Josh Harvey-Clemson will represent the Cardinals, which is the most in school history and the fourth-straight year the Cardinals have been represented in the prestigious all-star game.

A transfer from UAB, Staples was third on the team with 35 receptions for 593 yards and a pair of scores on the nation’s top scoring offenses. A Lineville, Ala., native posted a pair of 100-yard receiving games, catching five passes for 136 yards versus Syracuse and had a season-best seven receptions for 120 yards and a touchdown against Virginia.

Hikutini, who was a second-team all-ACC selection, finished the regular season with 49 receptions for 656 yards from his tight end spot, with a team-best eight touchdowns. The Sacramento, Calif., native recorded two 100-yard receiving games, including a career-best 118 yards versus NC State on Oct. 22.

Despite missing two games with an injury, Harvey-Clemons tied for fourth on the team in tackles with 61 and added a pair of sacks. He posted a season-high 11 tackles in consecutive games versus Marshall and Clemson.

Here are the Bowl projections after Saturdays embarassment vs uk. Not as bad as it could have been. Having the Heisman trophy favorite may be the reason why we are still in contention for a NY6 bowl. If we do not get this bowl, my guess would be that we end up in the Citrus Bowl.

We all know the results were disastrous Sunday after Louisville’s loss to the team down the road. We all thought well there goes the Orange Bowl! (I thought so) Maybe Not. There goes Lamar’s Heisman! (I did not think so myself) That also does not seem to be a foregone conclusion either. Multiple talking heads have stated he still has a firm grip on it as well. Then we got this from our guy Jeff Greer:

.@BovadaLV release: "The Heisman odds are currently off the board as the odds are astronomical in favor for Lamar Jackson."

You knew when Tom Jurich was ready to name a successor to Anne Kordes’ throne that it would be a Home Run. Dani Busboom Kelly returns to the Cards after 5 seasons as an assistant coach at perennial powerhouse Nebraska. We are very lucky to have her. Here are some tweets chronicling her very busy day. Follow her on Twitter: @danib18

The University of Louisville men’s soccer team defeated Notre Dame for the second time this season but this time it was in the sweet sixteen of the NCAA soccer tournament. Tate Schmitt scored the game-winning goal in the 71st minute. Louisville (14-5-2) advance to host Stanford-Virginia winner in a quarterfinal match at Lynn Stadium on Saturday at 7pm. Congrats and good luck to the soccer Cards!